How to Fix an Unbalanced Washer

Get the washer spinning steadily again

An unbalanced load means wet weight has gathered on one side of the spinning drum or basket. The washer may slow down, stop with an error, or leave clothes wet. We’d redistribute the laundry first because it separates a problem with one load from a washer that shakes on ordinary loads.

A blanket can bunch into a heavy lump even in a nearly empty washer. Some top loaders refill and rock gently as they try to spread the load before reporting an imbalance.

This applies when the washer bangs, walks, or reports an imbalance during spin. If water remains and spin never begins, follow the washer drain checks.

Spread out the load before another spin

The lock may take time to release, especially if a front loader still has water or heat inside.

1. Press Pause or Stop. If the control will not pause, cancel the cycle or turn the washer off.

2. Untangle sheets and separate clothes gathered on one side. In a top loader, place them in loose heaps around the basket, agitator, or impeller. In a front loader, spread them loosely enough to tumble.
3. Remove items if the basket or drum is packed. If the load is only one or two small items and there is room, add two similar machine-washable items that can use the same cycle.
4. Close the lid or door and resume the cycle. If the wash has finished, choose Spin Only or Drain & Spin instead of washing the clothes again.

Watch the next spin. A steady run without hard banging or another imbalance message, followed by noticeably less wet clothes, means the adjustment worked. If one blanket keeps failing, unfold it and place it loosely around a top-load basket or loosely in a front-load drum. Choose Bulky or Bedding when the item is machine-washable, fits with room to move, and the washer offers that cycle. If it remains too large or heavy to move freely, stop repeating the spin.

Choose the right restart when clothes are still wet

Rinse & Spin can add water.

If a top loader will not resume after an imbalance error, cancel the stopped cycle. If water remains, run Drain Only if your washer offers it; otherwise follow your model’s drain instructions before opening the locked lid. Wait for the basket to stop and the lid to unlock before rearranging or reducing the laundry, then restart the wash if it is unfinished. If the clothes are already washed, select Spin Only or Drain & Spin after correcting the load. For a Whirlpool high-efficiency top loader with an imbalance error, Whirlpool directs owners to cancel the cycle, run a drain-only cycle if water remains, correct the load, and start a new cycle.

Find out whether the load or washer is shaking

If the corrected load still bangs, compare a modest ordinary load with an empty spin after confirming firm footing.

1. Run an ordinary mixed load and watch from outside the washer. In a front loader, about two-thirds full is a starting point, with clothes loose enough to tumble. If it spins steadily and extracts water, return to how the troublesome item is loaded.
2. If the ordinary load also bangs, stop the washer, empty it, and press opposite top corners. If the cabinet rocks, level it using the steps below before testing empty.
3. Once the cabinet stands firmly, run an empty Spin or Rinse & Spin cycle. A quiet, stable empty spin points back to the laundry. Stop the test immediately if the washer shakes severely or walks.

Level a washer that rocks on its feet

Do this when the stopped cabinet rocks at opposite corners or ordinary loads began shaking after the washer was moved. You’ll need a bubble level and an adjustable wrench or pliers for threaded feet and lock nuts. A flexible, damaged, slippery, or carpeted surface can keep the machine moving even when the cabinet reads level.

1. Stop and empty the washer. Press one pair of opposite top corners, then the other. Rocking tells you that the feet or the surface beneath them need attention.
2. Place the level across the top from side to side, then front to back. Look at the floor, drain pan, or pedestal too. The washer’s feet must bear firmly on the surface supporting them.

3. If the washer is on a pedestal, confirm it is securely seated on its mount, then level the assembly using the pedestal feet and tighten their lock nuts. In a drain pan, make sure each washer foot bears firmly on the pan. For a washer without a pedestal, loosen the lock nut above each threaded foot you need to adjust. Turn the adjustable feet until the bubble is centered in both directions and every foot bears firmly; then tighten the lock nuts against the cabinet. Some top loaders have self-leveling rear feet or only two or three adjustable feet, so leave fixed feet alone.
4. Repeat the opposite-corner press.
5. Run a modest load and watch the spin. The stopped cabinet should no longer rock, and the washer should spin without walking or hard banging.

The washing-machine installation steps cover the rest of a new setup.

Inspect a new front loader’s rear shipping bolts

A newly installed or recently moved front loader can shake hard if shipping bolts and spacers still hold the suspended tub rigid. Four rear bolts are common, but the count varies. Locate all the rear bolts and spacers listed in the washer’s installation instructions, and do not run another spin while transit hardware remains fitted. LG’s front-loader vibration instructions (opens in a new tab) show the rear hardware.

1. Stop the washer, get another person to help if it must be moved, and look at the rear panel for large shipping bolt heads with spacers or sleeves around them. Use the supplied wrench, or fit an adjustable wrench firmly to each bolt head.
2. Remove every rear shipping bolt and spacer. Fit the supplied caps over the holes and keep the hardware for a future move.
3. Confirm that the feet still bear firmly and run a modest test load. The tub should have suspension movement when gently pushed while stopped, and the spin should no longer shake severely.

Look for packing beneath a new front loader

Rear bolts are not the only shipping restraint. On a newly installed or moved front loader, foam may remain beneath the tub or base. First identify the underside support and its removal route in the washer’s installation instructions; some designs require panel access.

1. If the instructions permit access from below, have another person help tilt the stopped, empty washer back and look beneath the base for a foam support.
2. Remove a visible, reachable block using the removal route identified in the installation instructions, then return the washer to its installed position. Leave a block that requires panel removal for the installation handoff.
3. Confirm firm footing and run a modest laundry test spin. The washer should stay steady without hard rocking; if it still shakes severely, stop testing.

What persistent noise means and what repairs cost

A top loader that bangs on many ordinary loads despite firm leveling may have worn suspension rods or another balance component. Continued thumping in a front loader can point to shocks or springs. A tub that slams or sits off-center, hard walking, severe shaking during an empty spin, or persistent grinding means the owner tests are over.

If scraping or rattling remains after the load is corrected, stop the washer, wait for the drum to stop, and empty it. Shine a flashlight into the basket and remove only an object you can reach without opening the cabinet. Turn the empty drum gently by hand. The object is cleared when the drum turns without scraping; persistent grinding or clanking belongs in the service diagnosis.

For a recent installation, contact the installer; under warranty, use the maker’s authorized service; otherwise book a qualified washer repair technician. Report the model and error code, whether an ordinary load or empty spin shook, and any walking, grinding, or water left after spin. Get a written total with parts, labor, tax, and the diagnosis-fee credit stated.

For US out-of-warranty service, an independent diagnosis visit is $70 to $150 if no repair is authorized. At an independent shop, a compatible GE top loader needing four factory rods at $26 to $27 each plus 1 to 2 labor hours at the independent appliance-repair rate of $50 to $130 per billed hour costs $150 to $370. At an independent shop, an accessible compatible LG-style front loader needing two retail original-equipment-grade shocks at $42 to $53 each plus 1 to 2 labor hours at the independent appliance-repair rate of $50 to $130 per billed hour costs $130 to $370. A technician must confirm the compatible parts and quantity for the exact model before using either estimate. A major drum or outer-tub assembly job runs $350 to $800 or more. A bearing that can be replaced separately is a smaller job, so the diagnosis must name the part being repaired. Shops mark parts up over retail, which raises the parts line on a quote.

For a compatible GE top loader requiring four factory rods, the independent appliance-repair labor rate input is $50 to $125 an hour.

An installer correcting feet or removing shipping bolts is doing an installation correction, while a technician replacing rods, shocks, or tub parts is doing a repair. Check your washer’s warranty before approving a paid repair. Compare the written total with the price of a comparable new washer, including installation, and weigh the washer’s age. When a repair approaches half that replacement price, compare replacement carefully.

Questions about recurring imbalance